Illinois football team makes a run in spring game

Sunday

Apr 15, 2012 at 12:01 AMApr 15, 2012 at 2:01 PM

Illinois redshirt running back Josh Ferguson is just playing football, so life is back to normal for the former Joliet Catholic star.

After missing most of the season last year with a serious hamstring injury, Ferguson returned to the scene with his burst. Ferguson rushed for 150 yards and could become a key component this fall in Illini coach Tim Beckman’s first season on the job.

JOHN SUPINIE

Illinois redshirt running back Josh Ferguson is just playing football, so life is back to normal for the former Joliet Catholic star.

After missing most of the season last year with a serious hamstring injury, Ferguson returned to the scene with his burst. Ferguson rushed for 150 yards and could become a key component this fall in Illini coach Tim Beckman’s first season on the job.

“It’s really relieving just to play football again, not being in rehab all day every day,” Ferguson said. “It’s been a long offseason. I’m happy to be back.”

Ferguson stepped up in Illinois’ search for playmakers in the Blue’s 13-12 win over the Orange in the team’s intrasquad scrimmage to end the spring season. While the defense overshadowed the rainy day as expected in a new system under a first-year coach, led by the play of defensive end-linebacker Michael Buchanan, Ferguson became a rising star on his side of the ball.

His 68-yard run showed speed at the position that hasn’t been there since Rashard Mendenhall, and Ferguson said he’s still not 100 percent back from an injury to two hamstrings on his left leg in the fourth week of last season when he slipped while returning a kick on a wet practice field.

Speedy cornerback Justin Green ran down Ferguson on his breakaway run, but Ferguson is trying to open it up and find his top gear. Popping a hamstring is about the worst thing a speedster can hear.

“I’ve been hesitant this spring,” Ferguson said. “This is the first time sprinting like this and playing football in a long time. Over the summer, I’m looking forward to getting it back.”

Ferguson, who earned most improved on offense during the spring drills, will share duty with sophomore Donovonn Young, who missed most of the spring season with a broken foot.

“Five and six in the mix,” said Ferguson, referring to their jersey numbers.

The 5-foot-10, 185-pounder has always heard criticism about his size, but Ferguson hoped to be 193 pounds by the start of the season to perhaps quiet questions about his size.

“I’ve been hearing it since I’ve been playing football since I was 8,” he said. “There’s not a lot of backs like this is in the Big Ten. There’s plenty around the country.”

In a search for playmakers, Beckman found a keeper, he said.

“You saw something that we saw early in spring ball,” Beckman said. “He made a couple outstanding plays. He’s got great speed, a great burst.”

Meanwhile, Buchanan put up a big number against a makeshift line split by a player draft during the week. Going against sophomore tackle Michael Heitz, Buchanan had with 4.5 sacks and 12 tackles. Now that Whitney Mercilus is gone to the NFL draft where he may go in the first round, Buchanan may take over as the defensive star after receiving defensive MVP in the spring.

“I wouldn’t say we got Whit out of the way,” Buchanan said. “We’d obviously like to have him back. I do feel like it’s my time to step up, being that guy on the outside, that edge rusher.”

Buchanan could have gone to the NFL, where he was projected as a middle-round pick, but he returned after meeting with Beckman. His numbers in the scrimmage spoke for themselves.

“I lost count,” he said. “Everybody kept making a point to tell me. I’m just trying to make plays. I wasn’t really thinking about it.”

Buchanan’s return along with cornerback Terry Hawthorne, defensive tackle Akeem Spence and lineman Graham Pocic was an added bonus for a program looking to build off the first bowl wins in consecutive seasons.

“All those guys are huge,” Beckman said. “It’s a culture change. There have been a lot of players (who) decided to come out early in this program. I hope those four players set a precedent. There’s an opportunity for this senior class to be something special.”

Special wouldn’t be a way to describe the spring game. Beckman called the quarterback play “on and off” and said the team’s overall play was “sloppy.” The kickers combined to miss three field goals, and a missed extra point by Metamora redshirt freshman Brennen VanMieghem played a role in the Orange’s loss. Nick Immekus kicked a 47-yard field goal for the win with 1 minute 22 seconds left.

John Supinie can be reached at Johnsupinie@aol.com. Follow him on Twitter @JohnSupinie.